Ways to use oldish/stale bread

Recently my trips to Aldi have coincided *perfectly* with their bread sales of prices 50% off. That is, 50% off loaves of 12 grain bread that only cost a little over a dollar anyway. The same bread would be over $3.00 at the "regular" grocery store. Included in these sales were wheat bread, 12 grain, english muffins, bagels, etc. To get English muffins and bagels for .40 cents a PIECE? I loaded my cart up with them, fearing the deals would be gone at my next visit.

I stocked my freezer. FULL.

Then on Sunday, a gluten-free family brought in a BOX of breads that their family happened upon but could not use and another family brought more bread than was necessary at the potluck. It was divvied out and I was a large recipient. Who can say no to Rye and Pumperknickel and Marble bread, I ask?!? Surely not I!

But when I got home--I could not squeeze another loaf into the freezer if it would save my life. On the counter it all sat, until something could be done to it because I refuse to waste even a crumb of such delicious bread.

We've had plenty of elegant sandwiches using elegant breads we don't often get (BLTs on marble loaf were my most favorite in college and I ate them every single day---ahhhh, those were the days!), made a nice celebratory batch of rye dip, and took plenty of snitches just to nibble...but even then-it is a race to use it all before it goes bad. After all, these breads were already day-old when THEY first received them!

I've compiled a list of things to do with stale bread; things I have done in the past and things I plan to do in the future.

Make HASTE, not WASTE!

~ Make a strata

~Sliced day-old bread actually does better than fresh in making French toast

~ Smother it with Sausage Gravy (or any kind of gravy really) and you'll never notice!

~Bagels can be made into bagel chips

~English muffins (or bagels) can be turned into pizzas

~ Homemade stuffing will make you never open those sacreligious boxes ever again.

~Croutons

~Bread crumbs

~ Bread pudding. (I've never done this one before, but it would do the trick. I just don't know if it would TASTE good while doing it! hehe)

~Make French Onion Soup and let it swim!

~ Make crispy Garlic bread

~Milk Toast is something (I just learned) Matt grew up with on his SICK days. I had never heard of it before but apparently it does very well for tummy troubles. Make toast and then soak it with warm milk. Eat it with a spoon. Has anyone else heard of this or tried it? I'd love to know more about it...

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If you find yourself with just an end piece of bread here and there, don't despair but don't waste it! You can pop it into a freezer bag and continue to do so until the bag is full, then use the frozen bits all at once.

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To revive not too-far-gone bread, I often will microwave it for 30 seconds with a wet paper towel overtop of the bread. It warms and softens it, but you need to eat it relatively soon afterward.